Feet from safety
RESCUERS WITHIN TWO METRES OF TRAPPED CHILD Bid to save boy stuck in well for 5 days
This photo shows the moment Moroccan rescuers yesterday came within feet of reaching a child trapped in a well for five days.
The operation to save Rayan Awram, five, has been a delicate and dangerous operation, delayed by rocks and amid the threat of landslides.
Workers with mechanical diggers have been trying round the clock to rescue the youngster after he fell into the 100ft-deep well in the hills near Chefchaouen on Tuesday.
Yesterday afternoon lead rescuer Thamrani Abdelhadi said: “We have two metres more to dig to reach Rayan and we hope we will not encounter rocks,”
He said it was dif f icult to determine the child’s health because a camera that has been dropped down the well shows him lying on his side, but he added: “We hope we
will rescue him alive.” It was unclear how long the digging will take.
Pictures on Moroccan media have shown Rayan huddled at the bottom of the disused well, which narrows as it descends from 18 inches wide at the top, preventing rescuers from getting to him.
Work er s in helmet s and high- v isibi l ity vests car r ied stretchers, ropes, tackle and other equipment down into a pit they have dug parallel to the well. On Friday
they began carefully excavating a horizontal tunnel towards Rayan. The work grew more difficult as they encountered rocks between the trench and the well.
The rescuers are placing concrete and steel pipes into the horizontal tunnel as they dig to allow them to pull Rayan to safety.
His father said: “People who love us are sparing no effort to save my child. We pray this will be the day of his rescue.”